Meet the man behind Leeds United's murals: ‘I'm not Leonardo da Vinci'

New York Times

14-02-2025

He's not Leonardo da Vinci and he's not even Tracey Emin. Robert Endeacott is just a Leeds United fan with a paintbrush and a priceless opportunity to create some Elland Road history.
Like thousands of Leeds supporters down the years, you may have travelled down Elland Road itself and never paid attention to Endeacott's latest canvas. Directly behind the stadium's Norman Hunter Stand, there is a plot of land between The Old Peacock pub and Subway that has sat dormant for years.
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It's been a forgettable wasteland for so long it has never been worth a second look. If you wander past there in the morning now, however, you might just see a hooded figure, shivering, fighting his own body and the elements to recognise the club's history.
'I use the grid system because I'm not Leonardo da Vinci,' Endeacott tells The Athletic. 'I'm not even unmade-bed-lass (Emin, whose 1998 sculpture 'My Bed' was shortlisted for the Turner Prize). I use the grid system and that's very important because it makes it a lot easier to do and I'd be lost without it.'
The only unkempt aspect of Endeacott's work is the crumbling brickwork he is painting on. It's one of his daily battles, but it adds rustic charm.
As of February 2025, you will see 14-foot high murals dedicated to Eddie Gray and Billy Bremner resplendent in the Leeds white of their 1970s pomp. John Charles, a club legend of the 1950s, is not far behind them, broad and barrel-chested in amber (not yellow Endeacott is keen to emphasise) and blue.
The faint lines of the grid used to paint Charles are still visible. The squares are Endeacott's map, making it easier to retain scale and accuracy over such a large section of wall. Gary Speed and Pablo Hernandez will follow the first three, filling out this 50-foot-wide expanse with colour and memory in homage to what went on across the road.
'Why am I doing it? That's a good question,' Endeacott ponders. 'It's because, like thousands of other Leeds fans, I'm just mad on the club, passionate and, thankfully, somehow got this experience and know-how to give something back.
'I hope to impress people, Leeds fans particularly, and players, if they ever see them because it's something I want to do. I'm in a fortunate position of being able to do it. I've got a fantastic opportunity with this plot of land Andy's got, so it was just crying out for me.
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'I did my first ever mural in 2000, inside the ground. It wasn't very good, but the idea was good. It got me thinking and I carried on from then, just writing and 'arting' about almost, but this wall was red brick and this plot of land was empty.
'It's been a wasteland for decades.'
Andy is Andy Taylor, a Leeds businessman. He acquired this land from Jacob Adler four years ago. Adler was the Manchester property developer who bought the stadium and this parcel of land from Leeds United in 2004. When then-chairman Andrea Radrizzani ultimately bought the stadium back in 2017, this parcel of land was not included in the deal.
Taylor has fenced and surfaced the land. It is set to be used as a Leeds United-themed car wash in the summer. Endeacott, who could no longer fight his urge to see the brick wall at the back of the land used appropriately, wrote to Taylor last year and the Bremner mural was started in October.
'I didn't realise how good he was,' Taylor tells The Athletic. 'He's not exactly picked the easiest ones, with Bremner with the net and stuff like that. It's painstaking, it's best not to come every day (smiles), but the end products are unbelievable.
'We'll kick on with Robert because you can't get any other place like this. You can't buy land anywhere, but you can't buy land bang opposite the South Stand at Elland Road as Leeds United fanatics.'
Endeacott was born in 1965, grew up in Beeston and still lives there. He went to his first game at four years old. His dad, Barry, was on the Elland Road ground staff between 1970 and 1997. His old stories about Don Revie captivated his son.
Endeacott may be better known to the Leeds fanbase as an author. There are 12 different titles, the majority about the club, listed on his website. In 2020, chief executive Angus Kinnear also credited Endeacott, in a matchday programme, with the idea to recreate Elland Road's iconic diamond-shaped floodlights with the new structures.
Endeacott insists it was nothing more than an emailed suggestion. It does show how passionate he is about the club and its history. As for his painting, he considers himself a perfectionist. Why?
'A fear of criticism, I suppose,' he said. 'My trade, for want of a better expression, is as a writer. You've got to be a perfectionist to be a writer. It's like a dagger to the arse cheek when you see a spelling mistake or some bad grammar.
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'It's more blatant with a painting and if somebody comes up and says 'that's wrong' or 'that's crap', then I'll probably break down and then kick off.'
That perfectionism makes Endeacott his own worst critic. That aforementioned maiden mural of 2000 is a good example. Peter Ridsdale had given him permission, and paint, to start it in the northern stairwell of the East Stand.
'I got cracking on what was called 'Eighteen of the Best', which was my 18 players who I thought were the best we've had across history, starting with Charlesy,' he said. 'It's been redone now, thankfully, because, to choose a less colourful phrase, it was a bit s***.'
Endeacott can smile about it now. It's one of the key advantages murals have over the books he has put out into the world.
'I was beginning to get a real self-confidence crisis,' he said. 'I go through such crises even now and anybody who knows me will tell you I might talk a lot of crap, but deep down I do think about things.
'If there's something I'm not too keen on, I start getting this lack of confidence. The great thing about murals is you can correct them. With books, you can't correct them. Once they're out there, they're out there.
'It's all good fun. I do love it and it brings, literally, colour to my life. I hope it does to other people as well.'
As an East Stand season-ticket-holder, Endeacott was reminded of his debut mural on a fortnightly basis. The 18 have now become the 19 best players with his latest effort, including Gray, Lucas Radebe, Nigel Martyn, Peter Lorimer, Gordon Strachan and David Batty among others.
Much of that stand was Endeacott's first canvas. The majority of that northern stairwell is dominated by the murals he and his friends, Paul Kent and Johnny (who wants to remain anonymous), have crafted.
Speed, Luke Ayling, Marcelo Bielsa, Howard Wilkinson and Revie are just some of the club legends immortalised along those walls and ceilings. Charlton, who the stand was eventually named after, appropriately has one of the most striking murals dedicated to him.
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Anyone who sits in the upper tier of the East Stand will have seen the painter's biggest work. 'We Are Leeds' is repeated in enormous silver letters along the top of the executive boxes in that stand. Anyone who has sat up there will also know how cold it is.
'We got it done, but it was hard work,' he said. 'Freezing. All the kneeling down, crouching down and then even lying down to paint, to draw, and then measure out. Hard work and I looked like Mr Bean getting back to my feet.
'It really was worth it and I see it every match. It's a damn sight better than blank cement.'
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Being worth it is the phrase Endeacott frequently reaches for when he talks about the murals. It is hard graft, in biting temperatures, while he contends with a sore hip and ankle.
He said: 'When it's hard work, when I've smashed my arm on the scaffolding or when I've twisted my ankle, I've got a dodgy Achilles, caught a stinking cold last week, you know what? It's all worth it when I get people telling me it's great. It brings a little bit of joy to Leeds fans.'
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(Top photos: Beren Cross/The Athletic)